The present invention relates to a multi-layer ceramic capacitor and a method of producing the multi-layer ceramic capacitor.
There is known a technique of providing a protective section (side margin) in a subsequent step in a method of producing a multi-layer ceramic capacitor, the protective section (side margin) protecting the periphery of internal electrodes. For example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 2014-143392 (hereinafter referred to as Patent Document 1) discloses a technique of producing a ceramic body, the ceramic body including internal electrodes exposed to the side surfaces thereof, and of providing protective sections to the side surfaces of the ceramic body.
Further, Patent Document 1 discloses another technique of providing a larger amount of a rare-earth element to a raw ceramic layer, which is to be a protective section, than to a ceramic section between the facing internal electrodes, and causing the rare-earth element to be diffused from the ceramic layer to the ceramic body at the time of sintering. In this technique, the rare-earth element diffused to the ceramic body suppresses the crystal growth at the time of sintering, so that the occurrence of a short circuit between the internal electrodes is suppressed.